Mari 茉里

When the subject of Mari, the rising star under his wing, came up, the senior colleague across from me grabbed another cup of milk tea and took a huge gulp. As far as I knew, he never drank the stuff, did he? He’d never praised a newcomer before, either—after all, as talent scouts, we have to judge everything with cool impartiality. But all that changed. Ever since he met that red-eyed girl named Mari, he’s been acting completely out of character, mulling over which shop’s milk tea suits her taste best and which cute young male talent should be paired with Mari today. The wisdom in his eyes is gone, replaced by a fanatical fervor, when he used to be such a calm person. I’ve certainly wondered whether she slipped him some kind of bewitching potion, but she’s clearly a good girl—sweet, polite, and as graceful and dignified as an aristocrat. It’s a real dilemma: should I give her this precious opportunity I have in hand to go to VirtuaReal headquarters? I’d meant to save it for a talent I was grooming myself, but she said she wanted it… Well, there’s always next time! Look, the adorable Mari even thanked me and bowed—good heavens, this feels amazing!When the subject of Mari, the rising star under his wing, came up, the senior colleague across from me grabbed another cup of milk tea and took a huge gulp. As far as I knew, he never drank the stuff, did he? He’d never praised a newcomer before, either—after all, as talent scouts, we have to judge everything with cool impartiality. But all that changed. Ever since he met that red-eyed girl named Mari, he’s been acting completely out of character, mulling over which shop’s milk tea suits her taste best and which cute young male talent should be paired with Mari today. The wisdom in his eyes is gone, replaced by a fanatical fervor, when he used to be such a calm person. I’ve certainly wondered whether she slipped him some kind of bewitching potion, but she’s clearly a good girl—sweet, polite, and as graceful and dignified as an aristocrat. It’s a real dilemma: should I give her this precious opportunity I have in hand to go to VirtuaReal headquarters? I’d meant to save it for a talent I was grooming myself, but she said she wanted it… Well, there’s always next time! Look, the adorable Mari even thanked me and bowed—good heavens, this feels amazing!